# Polycarbonate: Movement

A heavily traded plastic, from Asia to India

Source page: https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/polycarbonate/movement/

What this tab covers How it moves between countries: share of output traded, physical form and transport, the largest exporters and importers, main routes, India's trade, and handling rules in transit.

#### Trade in 2024 UN Comtrade, HS 390740
 World exports $8.02 bn 83 reporting exporters · about 2.91 m t Largest exporter South Korea 22% of world exports Largest importer China 22.3% of world imports India imports $640.7 m
exports $5.20 m #3 importer · #29 exporter

#### Where it is exported from and imported to, 2024

Chart: World map of the largest trade flows
 Exporter (size = share of world exports) Importer (share of world imports) Shipping chokepoint UN Comtrade 2024, HS 390740: shares of reported world exports and imports by value. Country-to-country route lines are not available for this commodity yet. Hover a circle for values.

#### HS 390740: largest exporters

| Country | Share | Value (US$) | Tonnes |
|---|---|---|---|
| **South Korea** | 22% | $1.76 bn | 693k |
| **China** | 13.9% | $1.11 bn | 487k |
| **United States** | 12.6% | $1.01 bn | 326k |
| **Thailand** | 10.9% | $872.8 m | 426k |
| **Netherlands** | 7% | $557.7 m | 164k |
| **Japan** | 6.7% | $539.6 m | 112k |
| **Spain** | 5.2% | $416.3 m | – |
| **Italy** | 3.8% | $307.7 m | 77k |

#### HS 390740: largest importers

| Country | Share | Value (US$) | Tonnes |
|---|---|---|---|
| **China** | 22.3% | $2.08 bn | 887k |
| **Mexico** | 9.2% | $858.4 m | 279k |
| **India** | 6.9% | $640.7 m | 313k |
| **Germany** | 4.6% | $433.6 m | 135k |
| **United States** | 4.5% | $424.7 m | 114k |
| **Italy** | 4.3% | $405.5 m | 156k |
| **Malaysia** | 3.1% | $285.8 m | 104k |
| **Czechia** | 2.7% | $247.8 m | 74k |

 UN Comtrade 2024, reported by each country (exports by exporters, imports by importers), all partners. Some countries (for example Russia and Iran) do not report, so their shares are missing. HS codes can be broader than the tile: check the code before reading a share as the whole market.

#### How it moves

| Measure | Figure |  |  |
|---|---|---|---|
| **Share traded** | about 35-45% of output crosses borders (indicative, basis: large Asian and Middle East export flows) |  |  |
| **How it moves** | Pellets in 25 kg bags or bulk bags in containers; sheet on pallets. Not dangerous goods. |  |  |
| **Routes and chokepoints** | Intra-Asia container trade; Gulf to Asia and Europe; Europe to North Africa and Turkey. |  |  |
| **India** | India imports PC from China, Thailand, Korea and Saudi Arabia (indicative). HS 390740: India imported $641 million (6.9% of world imports, rank 3) and exported $5 million (0.1% of world exports, rank 29) (UN Comtrade 2024). |  |  |
| **Handling in transit** | Not dangerous goods. Upstream phosgene (UN1076) is never shipped and is made on site. |  |  |

## Other sections

- [Summary](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/polycarbonate/index.md)
- [Overview](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/polycarbonate/overview/index.md)
- [Correlation](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/polycarbonate/correlation/index.md)
- [Production route](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/polycarbonate/routes/index.md)
- [Production](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/polycarbonate/production/index.md)
- [Feedstocks](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/polycarbonate/feedstocks/index.md)
- [Cycles](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/polycarbonate/cycles/index.md)
- [Trading](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/polycarbonate/trading/index.md)
- [Regulation](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/polycarbonate/regulation/index.md)
- [Characteristics](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/polycarbonate/characteristics/index.md)
- [Emissions](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/polycarbonate/emissions/index.md)
- [Relationships](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/polycarbonate/links/index.md)